She Said Yes!
by Infatuated-Simplicity
Summary: JPLE Oneshot! In an attempt to help out her friend Lily Evans makes a deal with Sirius Black… what in the world has she gotten herself into!


Author's note: every one is in their seventh year and Mrs. Potter (James' mum) is still alive. Pairings are JamesXLily and FrankXAlice.

Summary: JP/LE One-shot! In an attempt to help out a friend, Lily Evans makes a deal with Sirius Black... what in the world has she gotten herself into!

Discalimer: as you well know, i dont own any thing but the measly plot...

Lily was happily reading a book on a Wednesday afternoon, curled up in a large red chair by a window in the Gryffindor common room. As per the usual, everyone else was being obnoxiously loud but Lily was used to blocking them out.

"Lily! Oh Lily, it's horrible!" Well… she blocked out everyone but her friends. Lily hadn't seen her friend Alice run up to her nor had she seen the girl's tear stained face until it was buried in her waist length red hair.

"Alice, what happened?" Lily put her book down and tried to comfort her friend. Lily wasn't really in the mood to listen to Alice talk about boy troubles, which was inevitably what this was about, but she never let her friends down.

"Eva Martin, the Ravenclaw in our Muggle Studies class, told me that Sirius wouldn't go out with me." Alice sniffed and looked up at Lily with red rimmed eyes before bursting into another fit of uncontrolled tears. Everyone knew that Alice had fancied Black for a long time, but Black never gave her the time of day.

"Did she give you a reason?" Lily knew Eva Martin and there was a strong possibility that the Ravenclaw had said this out of spite for Alice, who was undoubtedly much prettier than her. But then again, with the way Black acted around Alice, their classmate could have been right. Alice started sniffing again and Lily made a mental note to change her shirt before she went to dinner, or anywhere for that matter.

"Not really. But she did tell me that the day Sirius asked me out was the day you accepted a date from James Potter." Lily frowned as she patted Alice on the back. Oh, if every one knew how she truly felt about the handsome Mr. Potter…

"Potter… That girl is off her rocker. I'll talk to Black and see what the problem is, okay?" Alice raised her head and looked into Lily's encouraging face.

"Okay, I'm going to take a shower." Alice said as she whipped her face and sniffed a few more times before heading up to her dorm.

---

"Black! I know you're in that tree. Come down now or I'll hex your arse till you can't sit... ever!" Lily was standing underneath a rather large tree near the Black Lake and after searching for Sirius Black for over an hour she was a little more than peeved. A shaggy head of black hair popped out from behind a patch of leaves.

"Alright Evans, just a bloody second. My arse is too shapely to hex and you know it. By the way James apologizes for not being here but he wanted to know if you would go out with him." Sirius jumped out of the tree and put, what looked like a small hand mirror, into his back pocket. But Lily wasn't concerned with that, so she got straight down to business.

"Is it true that you, the Casanova of Hogwarts, will not go out with Alice?" Lily placed her hands on her waist as Sirius stretched out under the tree and put his hands behind his head.

"You didn't answer my… well James' question." Sirius said in a playful manner.

"And I don't intend to until you answer mine. Now answer the question Black!" Lily was getting really frustrated. Sirius stared to chuckle.

"Keep your knickers on Evans. Alice is the one girl, other than you, that I will not go anywhere near." He patted a spot next to him, clearly wanting Lily to sit down, but she would have none of that.

"And why not? She's a great girl. She's smart, funny, pretty-" Lily was cut off by Sirius, who sounded quite exasperated.

"Frank fancies her and I'm not about to betray him like that." Lily was taken back by his answer, having never considered Sirius Black as the type of person to have moral standings or values of any kind. But then again, he had to be in Gryffindor for a reason.

"Oh… how long has he fancied her?" Lily asked, slightly hesitant because she was not sure where she stood with Sirius any more. He didn't seem to notice and went on in his casual demeanor.

"Years. He's just never told her." Sirius looked as if he was about to fall asleep but Lily knew better. That's just the way Sirius always looked when he wasn't up to mischief. She thought for a few minutes and then realized that Sirius was waiting for her to say something.

"I have a deal for you." Lily said in a propositioning tone. Sirius smirked in her general direction and then opened his large brown eyes.

"Interesting… what is it?" He sat up and began playing with a piece of grass. Lily knew about the Marauder's ways and she knew that she had sparked his attention.

"I will talk to Frank and he will agree to let you go on one date with Alice. Then you ask her out, the two of you spend an afternoon in Hogsmeade, and she realizes you're not the one for her." She said hoping that she sounded confidant.

"How do I do that?" Sirius cocked his head to the side and looked at her with large confused puppy dog eyes. Lily let out a long sigh.

"You act like a prat, Black. Nothing too mean of course, just enough to make her think she'd rather be friends. Then I'll go convince Frank to ask her out and then they go on a date. After that they are on their own." Lily walked over to the tree and sat down next to Sirius, who placed his forearms on his bent knees.

"What do I get out of all of this?" Lily found that Sirius' nonchalant attitude really did reflect his personality. The boy made it seem like he made deals of this nature everyday. But then again, you never knew with Sirius Black. It was very possible that he did make deals like this everyday. Lily pushed a few pieces of red hair out of her face.

"You get another girl to add to your list of people you've dated, Frank will be happy, Alice will be happy, and… James gets his date." Lily said the last part in a very quiet tone hopping that no one else heard what she had just said. Sirius sat straight up rubbed his eyes. He heard her, but he wanted her to say it again, and she knew it.

"What was that? I don't think I heard you properly." Sirius' singsong voice floated over to a few first years, who curiously looked over at the pair. With a glare from Lily the younger students briskly walked away.

"No, you heard me. Don't tell him the answer. I'll tell him myself at dinner." Lily turned to face Sirius once again and was met by a sly smile.

"Sounds good. By the way, does this little agreement call a truce between us?" Sirius held a hand out to Lily and his sly smile turned into a friendly grin.

"Yes, I think it does. Some people might even go as far as calling us friends after we pull this off." Lily shook his hand and got up. Sirius got up as well and began climbing back into his tree.

"Good. Then I get to call you Lily from now on. See you at dinner, Lily." Sirius called from a mass of leaves somewhere at the top of the tree. How he got up there that fast was a mystery to Lily.

"See you at dinner… Sirius." She said as she walked away. She found that the name 'Sirius' suited the boy much better than 'Black'.

---

"Padfoot, why won't you just tell me what she said?" James impatiently tapped his foot as Sirius casually sipped at his pumpkin juice. Sirius placed the cup down and turned to James, who was running his hand through his messy black hair.

"She wanted to tell you herself. And as you well know Prongs, I never deny a lady her request." Sirius winked at a large group of Slytherin fifth year girls, who immediately started giggling and waving back at him. James pushed the food around his plate and shot a quick glance at Lily.

"Fine. I don't know why I'm so excited. She'll probably just say 'no' again anyway." Sirius just shook his head at his friend's self pity.

"You never know, Prongs. You never know." Sirius said before he turned to Remus and started distracting their studious friend from his beloved studies.

James watched as Lily talked to Frank Longbottom who was reluctantly nodding his head. The boy seemed a bit skeptical. But then both Lily and Frank smiled and Lily walked back over to her friends. James saw Sirius look at Frank, who nodded his head once. Sirius got up and after a wink sent James' way, he casually walked over to Alice. After a few minutes Alice broke out in a hue grin and as soon as Sirius sat back down in his seat across from James, the girls started squealing, with the exception of Lily.

James was suddenly extremely nervous as Lily shot a look his way and drained her pumpkin juice in one large mouth full. She slowly stood and began walking towards him. He knew this was it. Sirius had conveniently occupied Remus and Peter's attention so it was just him and Lily.

"Potter…" Lily was turning a light shade of pink as she blushed and looked down at her feet. Then, almost as if she had remembered who she was talking to, her head shot back up and she looked him straight in the eye. On the outside James was not affected by her confidence but on the inside he was so nervous and hopeful it was pathetic.

"Yes Lily-flower?" James ran a hand through his hair and Lily faintly smiled at this familiar action. Off to the side, Remus was looking at the two of them with an amused expression.

"I accept." Lily had turned around to leave when James caught her hand. He was shocked and his face showed it.

"Pardon?" James was gapping like a fish and Lily found it so funny she actually started to laugh at him. When she regained her composure she noticed that he had taken the laughing as a sign that she was joking. She also noticed that he had released her hand so she picked his up from where it had fallen dejectedly at his side. He looked up at her, once again startled.

"Yes James Potter, I will go out with you. I think Saturday works for me." Lily smiled at him and the smile seemed contagious because a very large smile was slowly spreading across the handsome young man's features.

"You said 'yes'. You said 'yes' and your serious?" James still sounded completely dazed, so Sirius decided to interject.

"No mate, I'm Sirius. I thought you would have picked up at least that by now." Remus threw a glare in Sirius' direction but Lily just shook her head and turned her attention back to James.

"Yes Pot… James, I am S-E-R-I-O-U-S." At this clarification James suddenly jumped out of his seat and hugged Lily. When he let go, Lily was completely embarrassed but pleased to see Eva Martin staring in disbelief at them. James didn't seem to be bothered with any one but Lily.

"Brilliant! Can I meet you at ten thirty in the common room?" Lily found that she liked this flustered version of James. It was rather endearing.

"Sounds great. I'll see you later James." Lily gave James a light hug and left the Great Hall. As soon as doors had closed behind Lily, rumors started flying left and right. The Great Hall was absolutely buzzing. It was so loud, in fact, that no one noticed or cared that Sirius had gotten up and left just after Lily. James slowly sat back down in his seat and turned to Remus.

"She said 'yes'…"

---

"You like him, don't you? You like him as much more than a friend." Lily's hand flew to her chest as Sirius Black emerged from the shadows. She flipped a piece of her long red hair over her shoulder.

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Sirius." Sirius smirked at Lily and sat down on the hallway floor motioning for Lily to do the same. She rolled her eyes and rested her back against the cold stone wall.

"Don't play coy with me Lily. Just admit it. But if you don't want to tell him, I'll just have to." Lily's eyes went wide and she realized that Sirius was indeed serious. She had felt bad every time she had turned James down in the past but she hadn't been ready for a commitment back then. She wasn't even sure she was ready for one now but it was too late to back out. Now that she was going on this date she wasn't about to break James' heart. She knew what she had to do. She was going to have to open up.

"Fine, Sirius, I like James. In fact, I've liked him so long it's possible that I love him. Just don't tell him." Sirius waved a hand in the air signifying his compliance.

"That's fine. But you do realize that he's not going to let you just go on one date with him, right? Night Lily!" Sirius stood up suddenly and started running down the hall, presumably to get away from Filtch, who was still mad about the stink bomb Sirius had set off in his office a week ago.

"I know. Night Sirius!" Lily called after him and got out of the way as a red eyed kitten and Mr. Filtch both ran down the hall way after the Marauder.

---

"Today is the day Lily! I get to go out with Sirius Black!" Alice was jumping up and down on her bed, trying to find a suitable outfit, and squealing all at the same time. Lily put her book down and went to help Alice find something to wear.

"I know Alice. You reminded me about a million times since I woke up this morning. You look great." Alice had emerged from behind the curtains of her bed in a long skirt and very cute top. Lily made a mental note to borrow that shirt one day very soon. Alice hugged Lily and started looking for her purse.

"Thanks. Hey how about we meet up at the Three Broom Sticks around one? James and Sirius can hang out while we chat." Alice started waling towards the door and Lily waved to her.

"Sure! See you then." As soon as Alice closed the door Lily started sifting through her clothes.

She had five minutes to get ready before she was late. She grabbed her trainers, a pair of jeans, and her favorite long sleeved green shirt. She made a mad dash to the bath room, almost tripping a pair of slippers in the process, and brushed her teeth and hair. By the time she grabbed her purse it was ten thirty. She started down the stairs and saw James sitting on the couch with one of his legs moving nervously. She noticed, not for the first time, how adorable he truly was. She quietly made her way down the stairs and when she was on the last step he looked up. He stood up, gave her a nervous grin, and ran a hand through his hair.

"Lily you look… well, bloody gorgeous to be perfectly honest." Lily blushed at his statement. James offered her his arm.

"Thanks James, but I didn't do anything." She accepted his arm and they made their way towards the door. He leaned in close to her ear and whispered,

"I know…" he pulled away and Lily's blush darkened. He led her out of the common room and down to the quidditch pitch where he took a mini broomstick out of his pocket and enlarged it.

"James, where are we going?" Lily asked as James mounted his flying machine and motioned Lily to do the same. She moved towards him but didn't go all the way, seeing as though she was still waiting for a response.

"We're going for a ride and then Hogsmeade. Climb on. I promise you won't fall." He held his hand out to her and she took it. As soon as she was securely nestled in front of him he took off over the Black Lake.

---

Lily watched as James flew around the shrieking shack a few times before he landed just outside of the fence surrounding the slightly run down building. When they had both gotten off the broom, James shrunk it again and placed it inside his pocket. He offered his arm out to Lily again and she looped her arm through his.

"Where do you want to go to first, Lily?" James asked as he straightened out his glasses with his free hand.

"Do you think we could head to Honeydukes? And then Alice wanted to meet up with us at the Three Broomsticks around one. She'll be with Sirius. Is that alright?" Lily tilted her head up to look at James, noticing exactly how tall he was. James smiled back down at her.

"That is perfectly aright. But would you mind if we stopped off at Quality Quidditch Supplies after Honeydukes?" Lily didn't mind going to the quidditch store. In fact, she didn't care where they went as long as they did not step foot into one particular store.

"I don't mind. As long as we don't go anywhere near Zonko's I'll be fine." James waved at Remus, who was headed into the dreaded joke shop and sproting a few bandages seeing as the full moon had been the other night. Then James turned his attention to Lily again.

"You've got it Lily-flower." He said as they entered the Honeydukes sweet shop.

Once inside the store, James dragged Lily straight to the back towards some large bars of chocolate. Lily watched as James began sorting through a multitude of different types obviously trying to find something specific. She was surprised when he turned to her with an inquisitive look in his eyes.

"What's your favorite?" Lily blinked at him a few times.

"Favorite what?" Lily asked, obviously confused. James chuckled.

"Well, I was asking about candy but since we're on the subject, tell me all of your favorites." Lily thought for a minute and by the time she had come up with a list James had already found the chocolate he was looking for. Lily had seen Remus eating this brand on more than a few occasions and knew that James would not be the person devouring this particular bar of chocolate.

"My favorite candies are sugar quills, Blow Pops, and Skittles." James automatically grabbed a handful of sugar quills. But then he stopped for a second, not knowing what Skittles or Blow Pops were. Instead he picked up a few chocolate frogs.

"What are 'Blow Pops' and 'Skittles'?" James asked as he picked up a box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans. Lily threw a Licorice Wand at him which he caught easily.

"They are muggle candies. I'll let you try some one day." James raised an eyebrow at her but continued down the isle, frequently putting random something's in their bag.

"Fine. Favorite color?" James was looking at a rather large red lollypop, which he stuck in the bag next to the sugar quills. Lily assumed he was going to let her have some of it later, for it was an extremely large lolly… much too large for one person to eat by themselves.

"I like wearing green because it matches my eyes but I like red the best." Lily picked up a packet of drew balls and but them in the bag which was now getting rather full.

"Class?" James asked while going over what he had put in the candy bag.

"Charms, hands down." Lily said and then looked up a James who was now in the small line to pay for the sweets. When Lily moved to get some money out of her purse James stopped her.

"I would have gotten that right if someone had asked me what your favorite class was. I must say I'm slightly proud of myself." James straightened his glasses again. Lily was suddenly curious.

"What about you James? What are your favorites?" James placed the bag on the counter.

"Well, blue is my favorite color and but I've been told I look best in red. In fact I think that was that only reason the sorting hat put me in Gryffindor." James gave Lily a mischievous grin and then went back to his list. "My favorite candy… Bertie Bott's but I some times enjoy a good chocolate frog. And as or my favorite class, I would have to say I enjoy DADA the most. Oh, I have one to add! My favorite drink is hot chocolate and I already know yours is hot tea." James reached into his pocket and began sifting through what sounded like a large number of coins.

"How did you know that?" Lily watched as James placed the required amount of money on the counter and picked up the bag of sweets. James started to walk towards the door and Lily followed.

"You drink it all the time while you read in the common room." James reached into the bag and pulled out the licorice wand and handed it to Lily. Lily took the candy and looked down at her feet.

"Oh… I didn't know that you pay attention to those kinds of things." Lily blushed and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. She felt a hand tug at hers and she looked up to see James staring at her.

"Of course I do. Lilies first!" James said as he opened the door.

---

James and Lily walked into the Quality Quidditch Supplies just as she had finished her licorice wand and they continued chatting as James looked around. Lily had never quite understood why boys were so obsessed with the game. Sure, she liked it but not enough to hang posters of her favorite teams up on her walls. So she decided to find out what was so special about the game. She didn't know she was treading on sensitive territory.

"So James, what is so great about quidditch?" Lily knew she shouldn't have asked that question because as soon as she did the light that had been in James' eyes since they had started their date dimmed. James turned away from Lily and was looking at a magazine shelf.

"Well Lily, it's hard to explain." James shoulders hunched slightly and his head bent down a little. In that moment Lily felt like he needed a hug, and so she gave him one. James was startled as he felt Lily wrap her arms around his waist and place her head on his back. He knew Lily was a very caring and sensitive person but never, in all the years they had been at school together, had she gone out of her way to touch him much less hug him.

"Can you try? I've got all day…" Lily said as James tried to gather the words to express his emotions. Then an idea came to him.

"If I tell you, you've got to explain your reading fetish." James said and he felt Lily nod into his back. Her arms let go of his waist and moved around his shoulders.

"Deal. Now spill." Lily went up on her tip toes and placed her chin on his shoulder. James sighed.

"Okay, here it goes… I've played quidditch since I was a small boy. My dad was determined to get me on the team since he was on the team when he was in school. My dad was an auror so the time we spent together was few and far between but whenever he was home we would practice. My dad passed away a few years ago while on a mission. Ever since then the game has been my way of remembering him so I always play my best. But it does help that the game is fun." James raised and turned his head to see a slightly teary eyed Lily.

"Thank you for telling me that James. It means a lot." James grinned.

"It felt good to tell you. I want you to know the real me and I want to know the real you. So you'd better be ready to hold up your end of the deal because you're going on a piggy back ride to tell me all the wonders of reading since I rarely experience them." James said as he lifted Lily onto his back and ran out of the store.

"James, are you crazy? Put me down you nutter!" Lily was laughing and James stopped running but he didn't let her down.

"Not until you tell me why you love to read so much." James spun around in a circle causing Lily to cling onto him.

"Okay, okay! Reading brings me into another world. I get to shed my worries for a while and just read. I also get to learn more in the process. When I read I don't have to worry about school or my muggle sister thinking I'm some kind of freak…" Lily's voice dropped and James stopped walking. This was rather disturbing news to him.

"She thinks you're a freak? Your own sister? Which sister is this?" James started walking again but his pace was much slower now and the muscles in his jaw were stiff.

"I only have one and her name is Petunia Evans. She probably won't be an Evan's much longer. I think she'll be getting married soon to a horrible bloke named Vernon Dursley." James could hear the way Lily spit his name out and it sounded like this man was the unpleasant sort of fellow. James wasn't too sure about getting to know Lily's family but he knew that if he could protect her from people like that, he would.

"I don't know if I'm going to like your family Lily, but I think I want to meet them. Just to see what real muggles are like." Lily pointed her hand out in the direction of the Three Broom Sticks and James headed off that way.

"Not all muggles are that way. My sister is just a piece of work. She doesn't like me but she loves me. Does that make any sense? I suppose not but you'll like my parents. They are nothing like Petunia. When they found out I was a witch they were so happy and proud… especially my mother." James was relieved that Lily's family was not a bunch of witch burning magic haters.

"Then I would really like to meet your mum someday." James let Lily down and she reached out for his hand.

"I think I would like to meet your mother too." Lily was suddenly interrupted by a gagging noise.

"You two make me sick. Practically naming your children already." Severus Snape stood not but five feet in front of them, his hair not any less greasy than usual. James stiffened up.

"Snape, go stalk some other couple." Snape smirked at James.

"Not calling me Snivellus today Potter? Trying to impress the little mudblood?" James scowled and placed his hand strategically near his wand which was in his pocket.

"I'm trying to be civil. You can bug me later but I suggest that you leave… now." James was not a man to be trifled with and his voice showed that. Snape sneered at him.

"But I'm so enjoying tormenting you…you and your precious mudblood." A flicker of fear flashed trough Snape's eyes but James wasn't sure why. Then he saw a wand out of the corner of his eye.

"Petrificus totalus." Lily said in a calm voice and not but two seconds after she said it Snape was lying flat on his face right in front of Zonko's Joke Shop.

"Lily… you do realize you just did what your always telling me not to do, right?" James asked as Lily put her wand in her back jean pocket. Lily tucked her hair behind her ear.

"Yeah, but I'm on a date and I don't want to be disturbed. Three Broom Sticks?" Lily asked with an out stretched hand. James took her hand.

"Sure but we'll be about an hour early." He said as he looked down at his watch to check the time. Lily started walking to the pub and James followed her.

"That's okay. I think I'd like to talk some more before we meet up with the others." James opened the door for her and they chose a table. Before either one of them knew it they were chatting like they had known each other since they had been in diapers.

---

Lily had never had so much fun in her life. The two had been sitting in the Three Broom Sticks for a little over an hour getting to know each other. Lily had never realized exactly how much they had in common and how funny James really was. She couldn't remember a time where she had laughed so much. And James had explained why he disliked Snape so much.

Apparently pureblood families mostly interacted with each other and when James was still a boy he had a rather nasty encounter with Snape that involved a child's potion set and disappearing clothes. They had been at each others throats since. Sirius had been in the mess too but James never said what Snape did to him. Just when Lily was in the middle of telling James about the time she hexed Lucius Malfoy in Flourish and Blotts, they were interrupted.

"Lily!" Alice was coming over to their table pulling Sirius behind her. They grabbed two chairs and sat down. Lily was happy, for the very first time, to see Alice sporting a fake smile.

"Hey Alice… Sirius." Lily said as Alice put a large bag down under her chair. Sirius stood up and pulled a few coins out of his pocket.

"James, help me get some drinks for these lovely ladies." James nodded to his friend and hesitantly let go of Lily's hand, which he had been holding since they had entered the pub. Lily turned her attention to Alice.

"So Alice, how's your date going?" at Lily's question Alice's smile dropped a bit.

"…It's been lovely, but certainly not what I expected." Alice sighed and Lily patted her on the back.

"He is being nice, isn't he?" Alice's startled expression told her everything. Sirius had been the perfect gentleman but he had been cold and distant as well. She would have to give Sirius a large Christmas present as a reward for his hard work.

"Of course! He's been great but he's not really my type. I mean, he's still gorgeous but there's something missing." Lily gave her friend a comforting smile, knowing that Alice would not be going on a second date with Sirius.

"I'm sure he'll understand… After all, he is the Casanova of Hogwarts."

"We've already talked about it. From now on we are strictly friends." Lily patted her friend's back one more time before reaching into the candy bag and pulling out some Bertie Bott's.

"Good." Alice nodded in agreement but then her expression turned curious.

"What about you and James?" Lily stopped chewing on her candy and swallowed.

"I think I've really misjudged him all these years, Alice." Lily said as she tucked those pesky strands of hair behind her ear. Alice pulled back a little to give Lily the once over.

"So you fancy him." Alice watched as Lily grinned sheepishly.

"Yeah… but it might be more. I'll tell you about it later." Just as she finished her statement, James sat down and handed Lily her drink.

"Okay girls here are your drinks. So Lily-kins, how's the date going?" Sirius asked as he plopped down in his seat and handed Alice her butter beer.

"Well Siri-kins, it's been quite lovely so far." James was extremely pleased to hear this and he pulled her chair closer to his so he could wrap his arm around her waist. Sirius leaned back in his chair and sipped at his drink.

"Any chance Prongs will get a second date?" Lily looked at James and then back to Sirius.

"I wouldn't object if he asked." Lily was suddenly caught unaware as James' mouth was right next to her ear. In a whisper he asked,

"Lily-flower, would you like to go out with me again?" Lily turned her head and decided to annoy Sirius and Alice by whispering her answer back.

"Yes, I think I would enjoy that." James grinned at Sirius who folded his arms across his chest in a pissed off manner because James wouldn't stop whispering.

"Tomorrow night at six thirty?" Lily nodded and picked up her drink to take another sip. Over the rim of her cup she could see Remus approaching with a chair.

"Hey guys." Remus put his chair right next to Alice's and sat down. Alice looked startled to see Remus, seeing as the full moon had been Thursday night and he had been in the hospital wing since then.

"Remus where have you been these last few days?" Lily knew Alice would ask that and so she quickly and easily responded to her.

"He's been visiting his mother at St. Mungo's, Alice." Remus mouthed a 'thank you' in Lily's direction. James quickly picked up on the lie and said,

"That's right! I had almost forgotten she was there. I'll order some flowers for her." Sirius, not one to be left out, also added to the conversation.

"How is the lovely Mrs. Lupin, Moony?" Remus shrugged and pulled Sirius' butter beer from the shaggy haired boy to take a sip from it. Sirius scowled at him.

"Better." Alice seemed to buy the lie, but then her attention was drawn else where.

"That's good to hear Remus. Oh look, Lily! Poor Frank is over there sitting all by himself." Lily's eyes glinted mischievously and it made James wonder if she was some how related to Dumbledore.

"Go sit by him for a bit, Alice. We don't mind." Alice looked around the table and when she had gotten a nod from each she picked up her package and made her way over to Frank. James and Sirius both turned to Lily ready to interrogate the poor girl.

"Lily flower, why did you just lie for Moony?" Lily sniffed indignantly at James' question.

"I was not lying. As far as I'm concerned, Remus could have been visiting his mother at St. Mungo's sometime in the past two evenings." Lily said and while James gapped at her Sirius leaned back in his chair again.

"You know… you know about Moony's severe case of PMS?" While Lily began to laugh, Remus just rolled his eyes and James tiled his head to the side in thought.

"I wouldn't call it PMS, Padfoot. It's more like a fuzzy complex." James and Sirius started to argue about who was right and Remus interrupted them.

"I told her." At his statement both black haired boys stopped and said in unison.

"What!" Lily thought that now was a good a time as any to explain how she had come across this valuable piece of information. She leaned in and spoke low enough so that she was sure no one other then the boys could hear her.

"Well, one morning I was up really early, and by early I mean around three o'clock. I was getting too tired to read so I started looking out of the window and I saw a big black dog. Then suddenly the dog was gone and Sirius was there. I got curious and so I would periodically look out of my window on different nights to see if it happened again. Then one day the name 'Padfoot' clicked and it suddenly made sense that he was the big black dog. On the next full moon I happened to be looking out of my window around nine. If you don't already know my room looks out right over the whopping willow. I saw you all appear from under a cloak and then I saw you all transform. I didn't tell any one else but I did confront Remus about it since he was the only one I didn't see." Remus then edged in.

"We had a nice conversation on the hospital wing over some hot chocolate. Lily comes to see me the day after every full moon now." Lily shrugged.

"Actually I go to bring you your beloved hot chocolate since Madame Pomphrey won't let you have any. And if I don't go you whine at me. It's rather annoying." Sirius started to chuckle.

"That's our Lily-kins! Always looking out for others." He stopped chuckling then Lily playfully hit him on the shoulder.

"Shut up Siri-kins. By the way, where's Peter?" Sirius waved a hand in the air, obviously not caring where their small friend had gone.

"Who knows." And with that the four of them moved on to another topic.

---

Two hours later found James and Lily walking along the edge of the Black Lake. Lily stopped and James faced her.

"James, I had better head in. We have the essay due Monday in Transfiguration and if I want to go out with you tomorrow I have to finish it tonight." James nodded.

"Oh yeah… I'll be pulling and all nighter. You go finish and get some sleep. See you tomorrow Lily-flower." Lily rose up on her tip toes and kissed his cheek.

"Night James!" she turned and left. About a minute later she heard someone scream 'Yes' down by the lake. Just as she entered the castle she was greeted by a big shaggy black dog. The dog sniffed a few times and then let out a sneeze.

"Hello Si… Snuffles. Lets go to the library and talk." The dog licked her hand and began to trot off in that general direction.

When they reached the library Snuffles and Lily snuck into one of the older sections of the library that students hardly ever used. Lily looked around and then patted Snuffles head as a sign that it was clear to change. A few seconds later Sirius stood where Snuffles had been.

"So how are you going to pull this off? And Snuffles! You called me Snuffles! What kind of name is that?" Lily started laughing at Sirius' antics.

"You sniffed! It was the first thing I could think of. Besides no one will know it's you if I call you that while you're in doggie mode." Sirius stuck his tongue out at her.

"Fine, I guess it's not too bad. At least it's better than Rover or Fido or something ridiculous like that. Now how are you going to get Frank to ask Alice out? You know he's rubbish at that sort of thing." That mischievous glint was back in Lily's eyes.

"Elementary my dear Snuffles. We force him to tell her. And we do that by starting a rumor." Sirius looked at Lily as if seeing her in a new light.

"You should be a Marauder." He stated.

"Maybe someday… but for now I'll remain a member in spirit."

"So what kind of rumor are we spreading?" Sirius said as he picked up a book and pretended to read it. Lily shook her head realizing how out of place that looked, seeing as Sirius never went into the library to find a book. How he managed to do his homework was a mystery to everyone in the Hogwarts community.

"You'll see. But I will need you to help spread it." Sirius instantly understood.

"I'm in. I'll just be my usual nosy self."

"Exactly."

---

"Did you hear about Frank?"

"Longbottom?" Sirius was listening in on a conversation between Julia McKenzie and Robert Brown. Only yesterday he and Lily had been in the library discussing this and it was already in full swing. He decided to add some fuel to the fire, which he had been doing since he heard the rumor yesterday evening at dinner.

"About him fancying Alice? Everyone knows about that! He's been head over heals for her for years." Julia and Robert were suddenly very interesting in what he had to say.

"Really? Years?" Sirius saw Lily walking down the stairs and into the common room. He turned his attention back to the eagerly listening pair.

"Yeah, just about as long as I've known him." When he finished both Julia and Robert ran off. Lily was now standing right next to him.

"Hello Sirius." Lily said in a pleasant manner.

"Lily, have you heard about Frank?" Sirius asked in an overly excited tone. Lily flashed him a huge smile.

"I have!"

"Did you ask Alice what she thinks of him?" Sirius was waiting for a reply.

"Naturally." That was not the reply he was looking for and it was obvious Lily was just trying to get on his nerves.

"And what did she say?" Sirius made an impatient motion with his hands. Lily inhaled slowly and paused for effect.

"……she fancies him back!" Sirius pretended to be shocked.

"No!" he said disbelievingly.

"Yes!" Lily insisted as she saw Alice coming down from the girls dorms.

"That's bloody fantastic!" Sirius exclaimed as Alice got closer.

"I know. Alice, did you hear?" Alice was suddenly very excited to be in on the rumor since no one had told her what it was about, simply because it was about her.

"No. What's going on?" Lily looked at her watch and when she looked up Sirius mouthed the word 'Frank' to her. Lily looked around and saw Frank nervously waiting for Alice to be alone and James was waiting for her at the door. She took this opportunity to leave.

"Oh! I'm already late for my date with James." Lily waved to James, who then made his way past a group of fourth years towards her.

"Lily, are you ready?" James asked and grabbed her hand.

"Ready. Alice I think it would be best if you talked to Frank first. I'll see you later tonight." James gave Lily a quick kiss on the cheek and the two of them headed out the door. Alice turned to Sirius expectantly, but he had already started to retreat.

"I had better go, but Lily's right Alice. You should talk to Frank before you hear anything from any one else." Before Alice could respond she felt someone tap her shoulder. When she spun around she was face to face with Frank Longbottom.

"Hello Frank." Suddenly the entire common room was silent.

"Alice, umm… I should… well, I guess I should explain. I didn't spread the rumor but it's true. I have fancied you for a while but I didn't know how to tell you." Frank's eyes were roaming around the common room, looking at anything as long as it wasn't Alice.

"Oh! That's really sweet Frank." Alice saw Frank blushing and found it to be rather endearing.

"I was wondering if you would like to go to Hogsmeade with me next trip…" Alice smiled at Frank.

"Um… sure!" Frank smiled back at her.

---

James and Lily were sitting under a tree by the edge of the lake watching the giant squid play in the water.

"Well, my deal is complete!" Lily rested her head on James' shoulder and closed her eyes. James watched her as the sun set finding that he loved the way the sunset made her hair shine.

"What deal?" he inquired as he started to play with the long red hair he loved so much. Lily shrugged and moved closer to him.

"Nothing really. I just told Sirius I could get Alice and Frank together… and I did." James twirled a long red strand of hair around his finger.

"Playing matchmaker Lily-flower?" a smile graced Lily's face as she responded.

"Always. My next mission is to set up Remus with some one and then find Sirius someone that sweeps him off his feet." James started to laugh.

"The Casanova of Hogwarts? That's quite a mission Lily." Lily move from his side to sit in front of him and leaned back against his chest.

"That's why this particular mission is the last on my list. I'm hoping that by the time I get to Sirius he will have settled down at least a little bit."

"Good luck with that one love."

---

James Potter was looking for his girlfriend and was having absolutely no luck in finding her anywhere. After a while of searching he realized that he could just look at the Marauder's Map and find, and upon said realization he felt like a complete dunderhead.

"Lily! Lily-flower are you out here?" James looked around and spotted Professor Dumbledore not but a few feet off.

"Mr. Potter, I am going to presume that you are looking for you girlfriend. I am pleased to inform you that she is sitting by the lake under a tree with a rather large black dog. You know Mr. Potter, it is funny... I don't recall dogs being on the permitted pets list… must look into that…" James didn't stick around long enough for the elderly man to come out of his musings.

As he got closer to the lake he could indeed see Lily reclining against a tree, reading, and scratching the recently deemed Snuffles behind a fuzzy black ear. The familiar dog sat in bliss with his eyes shut.

"Snuffles, my canine friend, you are enjoying that way too much." The dog just opened one eye and then lazily closed it again. Lily looked up from her book and signaled him to sit down next to her. After he'd plopped down she leaned over and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"You just missed Remus. We were having a study session. Snuffles was not a participant but he sat like a good doggie for over two hours so I thought he deserved a reward." James looked at his friend in canine form.

"You know what Snuffles? I quite like you this way. Maybe you should make the change permanent. Your disposition is so much nicer." A snort came from the large wet black nose. James turned back to glance at Lily who was once again completely focused on her book.

"Well, Lily-my-love, if you could tear your attention away from you book I have a question to ask you." Lily sighed and laid her on her lap and watched as Snuffles ears shot up in interest. Lily noticed James' fidgeting hands and grabbed one of them in comfort, waiting for him to ask her the big question. After a few minutes of a pregnant silence Lily got a little frustrated.

"Oh for heavens sake! Out with it you great prat!" James looked up slightly started and took a deep breath.

"Okay, now don't freak out. My mother is coming for a visit next weekend and I wanted to know if you would like to meet her." Lily's eyes softened and she pulled him into a hug.

"James, are you sure? We've only been dating for five and a half months." James brushed some of her red hair away from her face.

"I've already asked Mum and she is quite excited about this. But I told her it was up to you. So are you up for it or will I have to visit my mother all by my lonesome?" He put on the best puppy face he could muster but even he had to admit that Sirius was the best at it. But then Sirius had a big advantage in the form of his canine counterpart Snuffles. Lily smiled and stood up.

"Of course I'll go with you! I've been dying to meet your mother." The couple heard a loud sniff and looked down to see Snuffles rolling his big brown puppy dog eyes. Lily laughed and patted his head.

"Alright boys up to the common room. And Snuffles stop rolling your eyes or they get stuck like that." Lily was rewarded with a loud bark.

---

When they reached the common room Lily and James immediately headed towards Remus who was chatting with a confused looking Peter. Snuffles ran up the stair towards the boy dormitories. All of the sudden Alice raced through the portrait door and hid behind Remus.

"Remus, hide me. Hurry or Frank will see me!" Lily's eyebrows furrowed together as she watched her friend move Remus around, trying to find the best position to hide from her boyfriend. Lily addressed her best friend.

"Alice, what did you do?" Alice peaked her head around Remus' arm and then moved back.

"Oh nothing…" Lily placed her hands on her hips and tapped her foot in impatience.

"Please Alice, don't play innocent with me. Now what did you do?" Alice sighed and moved from behind Remus.

"I pushed him in the lake." There was silence for a few seconds and then Remus and James started laughing. Lily looked at her friend not quite comprehending… or perhaps it was more like not believing what she had just heard.

"What?" Alice moved over to sit on the couch and dragged Lily with her.

"We were on the hill by the lake talking and he was being a prat so I pushed him. I didn't think he would loose his balance and fall. He rolled down the hill and landed in the lake. When he came out he looked angry so I ran. I've been hiding ever since." Lily bit her lip and tried to get the hysterical image of Frank Longbottom rolling into the Black Lake out of her head.

"And when was this?" Alice stared counting off something on her fingers.

"About five hours ago. Right after breakfast I think… Oh Merlin, here he comes. Save me Lily!" Alice said in a hushed whisper as she stood to face her fast approaching boyfriend.

"Alice, where have you been? I've been looking for you all day." Frank took both of Alice's hands in his.

"You're not mad? I did push you in a lake…" Frank shook his head.

"No I'm not mad at you. I was slightly annoyed because there was a fish in my pants… Merlin knows how it got there… but I thought the whole thing was rather funny until you ran." Alice gave him a small smile.

"Are you sure you're not mad." Frank laughed and Alice blushed.

"Come here you." Frank pulled Alice into a hug just as Sirius made his way down the stairs and over to James and Lily. Sirius and Lily both looked at each other and squealed in a very girlish sense.

"Those two are so CUTE!" James watched as his best friend and girlfriend fell over laughing at each other. Peter cautiously approached Lily and tapped on her shoulder.

"Lily I wanted to give this card too Lauren Hamilton and I need some female advise. Can you help?" Lily stood up and started towards the table that Peter had been working on. She turned and gave James a kiss on the cheek.

"Sure Peter. I'll be back in a few minutes James." As soon as Lily was out of ear shot Sirius turned to James with a very serious expression on his handsome face.

"So mate, why are you introducing Lils to your mum?" James ran a nervous hand through his unruly hair.

"…I'm gonna ask." Sirius' eyes got wide as he watched James watch the love of his life guide Peter through the ways of romantic poetry.

"You're going to ask THAT?" James nodded his head and focused his attention back on Sirius.

"Yep, I'm sure she's the one. I'm going to ask her at the graduation party my mum is throwing in June." Sirius searched his friends hazel eyes and looked around before whispering,

"Have you picked out a ring yet?" James smiled.

"Yeah, it's upstairs. I'll show you later." Sirius leaned back on the couch and winked at a pretty fifth year girl with long blonde hair.

"I give you my blessing as long as you name me Godfather of your first child." James chuckled and stretched out his hand which Sirius shook.

"Deal." Out of nowhere Lily sat down on James' lap.

"So what have you to pranksters been talking about over here?" James straightened out his glasses.

"Nothing Lily-flower!" Lily looked between the two boys very skeptically.

"Sure… you two are plotting something over here and it had better not be another stink bomb in Filch's office." James violently shook his head and Sirius simply smirked in a way that would make his mother proud. Sirius shrugged his shoulders and said,

"Nothing overly important Lily-kins. we were just planning your wedding thats all." Lily looked satisfied with this answer while James look absolutely horrified.

"Oh, well if thats all... Wait... What? James! tell me right now exactly what you two were talking about!" James turned to Sirius with an accusing glance.

"You git! Now look what you've gone and done." Sirius shrugged and winked at his best friend.

"What can I say Prongs, Graduation is too far away. Better to ask her now rather than wait till she's strangled you, which, by the look of it, she might do in a few seconds." Sirius walked off laughing and exited the common room. Just as he was about to turn the corner of the corridor he heard James' excited announcment to the world. Infact the majority of Hogwarts heard him scream "she said yes!".

End comments: now i know that J.K. Rowling has her own ideas for this whole story but I had to get my idea out. i like this story and it took me a long time to write so i hope you like it too.


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